Past, Present, and Future
by AlistairDante
Summary: It's been ten years since Dante sealed himself off and into the demon world to chase down Argosax. As such, Nero has taken over the shop and the boredom that comes with it. Recently though, Nero has bee having strange dreams, all of which that have to do with Dante in someway, and an enigmatic demon who claims to be bound to him. All of it leads up to the hunters' final dance.
1. Chapter 1: Another day in the life

**WARNING**

This Fic was written to not only bridge all of the DMC media, but to act as an end to the original DMC arc, as CAPCOM has proven they are now incapable of doing anything correctly anymore (What happened to you guys..?). As such, this story takes ideas and elements from things like the anime, manga, and DMC 4 novel in order to build the story. Any questions you have can be answered if need be, just ask :)

This stoy also will have a few lemon chapters but such will be standalone chapters and warned as such to then be skipped by those who would not like to partake in such reading. However, such actions may still be hinted toward in actual chapters, whether they are referring to the aforementioned lemons is up to your inference skills :P

I do not own Devil May Cry nor related products. Such is copyrighted and owned by Capcom. As much as I wished I did own it, I don't have enough quarters to please the mall's wishing well :( Still, I do not gain any profits from writing and publishing this story as it is for entertainment purposes only, thank you.

Please do review it honestly, I want to know what you guys are looking for and what you expect to happen! Any honest critique is valued as well, it's how we writers get better after all~

**WARNING**

Nero couldn't breathe, and what air he could grasp onto was quickly lost from his lungs with a short gasp. The demon in front of him continued to close his hand tighter around the devil hunter's neck, its claws nearly piercing Nero's pale skin. Nero tried his hardest to escape, bashing his dim, grey bringer repeatedly against the devil's wrist to no avail, especially with his strength waning with every second gone by. The more he fought, the tighter the demon's grasp on him became, making sure Nero literally wouldn't be able to draw another breath for as long as he lived as the conflict raged on. The devil's voice was coarse, like rusted metal grinding another piece of metal that was even more corroded, "Interesting… Here you hang, weak before death's open and inviting door, yet you still fight to live… Why is that? What do you have yet to gain? Is it common instinct, like a roach's need to hide from the light, or is it more? It's ambition, courage, the will to fight back for others… Yes."

Nero suddenly fell to the floor, a sharp inhale of air causing him to cough violently while his lungs re-adjusted. Looking up as best as he could, he watched the demon walk away slowly into the surrounding darkness, "My efforts may not have been in vain after all… Nero." Nero watched as the devil disappeared from sight, a sharp pain immediately filling his bringer which made Nero hiss in pain softly.

Sweating, Nero jolted up in his bed, awake and covered in cold slimy sweat. His Devil Bringer glow softly, its ethereal blue aura-like glow illuminating the bedroom enough for Nero to see it was his own. The clock on the nightstand beside him blinked idly, five-thirty three; another two hours until the sun would visibly rise over Capulet City and his day could officially begin. Inhaling, Nero gently coughed and instinctually brought his hand up to rub at his sore throat, it had been only a dream, right? Nero had known better than to take things for what they were and, with a small sigh of annoyance at his unwillingness to sleep again, decided to slide out of bed. It took him a minute to put his dark-blue denim jeans on properly, the dream taking all of his cognitive thought; he couldn't stop wondering what the hell it was, a dream or an actuality.

Heading out of the room and down the hall, to the balcony overlooking the main office space of DevilMayCry, Nero leaned on the railing and looked it over. A month or so back, he had decided to refurbish the office so that it looked more like it had a few years before Dante's journey into the demon world. It was now more open than previously left, now wider and with the bathroom behind the desk again. A bar sat in the rear right corner of the foyer, the door right below Nero leading back into the small kitchen he had installed. The upstairs now had both the master bedroom, but now it also had a guest bedroom and a bathroom as well. Below the stairs Nero walked down the reach the first floor, sat the old red couch from the original office, a smaller speaker set in between the two couches to complete the angle.

When Dante ventured into the Demon World after Argosax, Nero left behind the Fortuna branch to his two partners there and took over the headquarters, the change of ownership clear from the tidy state the office stay in. It had taken years to pay off the debts and loans Dante had left behind but Nero was finally happy to be rid of them now. The old desk Dante used still stay as well, Nero remembering explaining that "it added character to the shop as a whole" to the two female hunters. As he sat behind the desk, Nero took a deep breath and exhaled as a wave of nostalgia rolled over him. He thought about the things the poor desk he sat at had been through, as he ran his fingers lightly along the surface, across the various scuff marks, bullet holes, and the many scratches from wear and tear and some less than pure acts between he and the red-clad hunter before he had disappeared.

This was a usual morning ritual for him, leading to him to look toward the picture on his right: The picture of Eva had been replaced with a picture of the whole gang, shortly after the Savior incident on Fortuna Island. Nero couldn't help but smirk and finally laugh softly as he thought of the past and how drastically meeting Dante had changed his life. His was Naïve then, only around nineteen or so when Dante had come crashing into his world, literally. He remembered how fluidly Dante moved, how easily he dodged all of Nero's attacks with grace. Nero even blushed as he remembered biting one of Dante's guns then too and the excitement that traveled through his spine at that moment. That was a long time ago though, fifteen or so years in the past, and Nero was smarter now and a bit more mature most of the time.

Letting his daydream continue to exist as just that, Nero stood and head back into the kitchen to put a pot of coffee on, he would need it after so little sleep. As he stood in front of the coffee machine and waited for it to fill, he find himself thinking of Dante again. This happened often as he thought of the abuse his poor desk had suffered at their hands and claws. There were times Dante would DT or use Doppelganger and it drove Nero insane. Suddenly thinking of Dante in his demon form brought him back to his earlier dream, Nero again instinctually rubbing his neck.

Interrupting his thinking, the front door suddenly opened and closed, a woman calling out to Nero. He shook his head free of the thoughts and walked back in to see Patty, wearing a pink hoodie and black jeans. She wasn't the young girl she used to be anymore, not only in age but in innocence. The stance she stood in was solid, her face clear of any indecision or over-thinking. She had been training under Lady since she had turned 18 and it changed her a lot. The only part that hadn't changed was her OCD, constantly commenting on how much she liked Nero's cleanliness compared to Dante's.

Nero waved to her and smiled, "Hey stranger, what's up?"

"Nothing much, the usual demon problems here and there, I'm almost wishing for something major to happen so business booms."

Nero nodded and laughed, "I hear ya, I have coffee on if you want some."

"Coffee, really, you know I only drink green jasmine tea with…" This caused Nero to laugh a bit more; maybe she hadn't really changed at all…

Nero sat at the desk as Patty sat on a stool at the bar, both watching the T.V. on adjacent corner to the bar. After a minute of watching the news, she turned the Nero and placed her cup of tea on the bar, "So… Still no word on him?"

Nero shook his head with a sigh in response; this had become a bi-weekly ordeal with the two of them. Everyone hoped that one day, Dante would magically appear before them perfectly healthy and home to stay, yet they all knew it was highly unlikely. Every time she came, her cheerful face would progress into one of sadness and lost mirth; it tore at Nero's heartstrings to see it all unfold before him. He wished he could bring Dante back but no one was blaming him for not being able to. He, after all, was just as hurt by his sudden leave with no "good-bye" as anyone else if not more, so he knew how she felt.

Over the hour, they talked about recent jobs and things that had happened recently to them personally, however the time came where Patty felt her stay was overworn and, after bidding her farewells, left Nero to his lonesome. The office was now quiet again, save for the news playing on the T.V. above him. Switching it off and turning the stereo system wired throughout the office on, Nero pushed the play button and lazily rolled the volume knob with his bringer as he passed the main hub, increasing the volume to nearly full as music began to play and now filled every inch of airspace with loud guitars, "… Sporadic doom, as knights loom. Does clergy support this action; pure wrath of the winged assassin…"

Walking under the stairs and past the couch, Nero unlocked a steel door and opened it, flipping about five light switches before continuing inside. Large overhanging lights turned on as he stepped in, eventually passing him and lighting up the large, warehouse-like space around him. Before him were rows upon rows of shelves, each up to his head in height and adorned with Devil Arms and various guns. Spears, bows, swords, lances, maces, Nero had almost every weapon known to man in the form of a Devil Arm, and even those unknown by any mortal being. He would throw the occasional greeting to some of the devil arms, getting a, "Greetings, master," from Agni and Rudra as he passed. After checking through the storeroom of weapons, Nero head back, locked the door once more, and lay down on the couch with a sigh of extreme boredom.

As Patty had pointed out, Jobs were as thin as ever, some weeks being good but most being slow and devoid of any work. Three hours into the waking work day and there weren't any calls, so it seemed more and more like today was going to be another one of those days. Laying his head back down on the couch pillow below him, he flexed his bringer and yawned. After such rough sleep the night before, Nero wasn't about to say no to a small nap, and yawned as he got comfortable on the leather couch. Stretching his arms out with a soft groan, Nero lay face up on the couch and looked at the ceiling fan in the middle of the foyer, slowly spinning. Soon, the loud music next to him and his vision faded out into nothingness as the void of sleep overtook him.

Nero opened his eyes and immediately found himself standing at the edge of an enormous tower, overlooking the devastated city below him. He was wearing his boots and jeans, leaving his bare chest to be damp from the rain that pelted the tower and himself. Even stranger, Nero found himself holding Yamato in his bringer's tight grasp, _How did I get here... Where is here?_

Nero turned around when he heard the sound of wet footsteps behind him, his eyes widening as the person that approached him became more and more visible up the stairs to him. It was unmistakably Dante, his white hair and signature red coat a dead giveaway. However, to Nero, he appeared much younger than when Nero last saw, even younger than when he had first seen Dante actually. As Dante climbed the final step and was on level with Nero, he sighed, obviously debating a lot internally. He moved in a restricted sort of way, as if he didn't know what to do. With an exasperated sigh, Dante finally shrugged and continue to sort-of pace in circles, "You sure know how to throw a party; no drinks, no food, and the only babe just left."

"Dante, are you okay? What is this?"

"Whatever, at any rate, it's been nearly a year since we last met. How about a kiss from your little brother, or better yet, how about a kiss from this?"

Nero felt every muscle in his body tense tightly as Dante whirled Ivory around and pointed it straight at him, aimed directly between Nero's eyes. Nero's heartbeat filled his own ears, racing quickly in a mix of confusion and fear as he stood still and frozen.

"So this is what they call a heart-warming family reunion?"

"Dante!"

Nero had to quickly slide Yamato upward, grinding the blade against Rebellion as Dante streaked past him. As Dante continued to attack him, Nero found that his swordmanship, while spot-on, wasn't as fluid as he was last time their blades met in conflict, and Nero knew Dante was playing with him then. Here, Dante was obviously holding back, but Nero couldn't guage how much as he was only playing a defensive role. As soon as Nero got cocky however, Dante reached behind his back, whipping out a light blue weapon that he spun around, nunchuk- style. Nero knew it as Cereberus, Dante metioning that he had gotten it a long time ago on an old mission he had gone on before opening DevilMayCry. Never having faced an opponent with said weapon though, Nero was taken aback when Dante began whippping it around at him, the nunchuks close to hitting Nero's face and body multiple times.

Nero, needing his comfort space, began to slash away with Yamato, surprising Dante with his sudden change. With a smirk, Dante replaced the Frozen nunchuks and drew the two other blades on his back, "Look brother, I told you he would use us!"

"Indeed you did!"

Dante smacked both pommels together harshely, shutting the demon swords up before rushing at Nero with a flurry of swings, which Nero deftly avoided with Table hoper before countering with his own slash, cutting Dante's right arm. Dante growled and moved close again, Nero's current position forcing him to butt Dante back with the butt of Yamato. Losing patience, Dante drew Ivory once more and shhot off a few rounds at Nero which, thanks to nothing but pure and instant instinct, Nero managed to block with Yamato, causing each bullet to split and fly past. Dante panted, xhausted as his clothes began to weigh him down, Nero bogged nearly the same and thankful he didn't have his heavy denim coat.

"Father? I don't have a father, I just don't like you, that's all," Dante spoke, Nero ignoring it as it didn't really make sense to him. Dante then drew Rebellion once more and dashed toward Nero, causing the two to lock blades again once more. As both blades ground against one another, the metal began to glow a deep hot orange, before Nero spun around Dante and slashed diagonally to the right with Yamato, feeling flesh and fabric tear under its cold, savage bite. Not knowing why, Nero turned and watched as Dante fell, reaching out and grabbing the silver chained amulet hanging around the demon layer's neck as the hunter hit the water-logged ground with a splash and a dull thud. His blood mixed slowly into the water surrounding them. Nero stared into the red gem he held now in his hand, it shined softly in the bright full moon's light that stood proud above him.

Finally out of his trance-like state, Nero dropped Yamato and backed away from Dante's motionless body, panting softly. Looking away from the body, Nero was surprised to see that the area around him had suddenly been swallowed by darkness, neither Yamato or the amulet in either of his hands. Turning behind him, Nero found himself standing before the demon he had dreamt of earlier, quickly using table hopper to increase their distance. It spoke, same as before, however this time, calmly strode to Nero, "You do not lack the ability to kill, yet you had indeed held back... I believe I am done with you for now, further examination must be done in person..."

Nero quickly growled, his posture tightening as he stepped forward, "Just wait a damn minute, who the hell are you?"

The demon stopped a moment before continuing to walk past Nero, "The one who will surpass that which you see as god..."

Nero stood, dumbfounded at the demon's words and let him disappear into the shadows once more, racking his brain for answers. Nero wasn't the religious type so what god could he be referring to? As he felt himself fall back into a familiar warm darkness of his own, Nero could have sworn he heard Dante calling out to him, "Nero... Nero!"


	2. Chapter 2: Ultra Violet

Nero jolted awake suddenly, panting much like he had earlier that morning, and gripped his slightly burning bringer. Catching his breath, Nero felt someone else in the room with him and looked over to find his instinct was right, "Trish..."

"Hey, look who decided to finally wake up, I tried waking you awhile back but you were dead set on going through whatever dream you had there. Are you okay?"

Nero thought a moment: was he really okay? The entire ordeal felt too real to him, the soaking rain covering him completely, the cold wind biting his bare chest and the cold lash of Rebellion against him all remained, or at least the feelings did. After a couple seconds of thought, Nero nodded and groaned as he slid upright into a sitting position. "When did you get here?"

"About an hour ago, got a job you might be interested in, hon."

"That's out of character, you asking for help. What kind of job are we talking about here, Trish?"

Trish turned the desk chair so she now completely faced Nero and tossed him a folder, the contents spilling outward, fanning out almost perfectly on the table, "There's this small town, about a day's drive out of our 'wonderful' city here, that's been having people go missing left, right, and center over the past few months."

"So why does this concern us, as hunters?"

Trish laughed, "You sound like him already, must come with the office," she smiled and flashed him a trademark smirk of hers, "isn't the fun finding out? Come on, we'll take my car."

Nero furrowed his brow for a moment as he got up and grabbed a black shirt from the back of the couch and a box of playing cards from the table, "You have a car now? God, you are getting old."

"Hey, if anything, I don't look a day over twelve-thousand!"

"Demons..." Nero scoffed playfully as he pocketed the cards and slung Lucifer onto his back, it's eyes looking as if they peered into his soul when he picked it up. Following Trish into the black convertible parked in front of the shop, Nero sat back against the passenger seat and began to shuffle the playing cards he had picked up.

The door to DevilmayCry was unlocked, which would make the job much easier for him. Wary of being cocky, he slowly closed the main door behind him and looked over the office before him. He listened for a moment, completely still before purposefully and methodically striding through the office, his boots softly thumping against the hardwood floor. As he passed the desk, the framed picture caught his eye and, against better judgment, he picked it up to look it over. Lady and Trish smiled and waved, Dante grinning childishly as he held Nero in a hold, Nero also laughing as he gripped the older hunter's coat with his bringer to stop him.

Getting back on track, he placed the picture back down onto the old desk and turned back to it's original position before heading for the door under the stairs. Letting out a low growl at the deadbolt and padlock the door was secured with, he looked around the office for something he could use to break them. Puling one of the display swords off of the wall, he quickly slashed downward, cutting the padlock itself in half and rending the bolt from its hold on both the door and wall. Putting the sword back on it's display, he slowly strode into the dark room, not needing light to find what he searched for.

The sun was setting by the time Nero and Trish reached the small town, the evening sky painted a mix of deep oranges and royal purples. Trish wore the perfect amulet around her neck, having sheathed Force Edge onto her back in an effort to hide it's true power and the fact that she carried Sparda's sword. Nero had long ago pocketed the cards once more and now followed her empty handed. She led him into city hall, where the Mayor met with them and explained the situation. As he spoke, Nero hung on each word, looking as if he weren't listening at all, "... Few months ago when it all first began, the disappearances. It wasn't until recently that we found the same people walking around again as if in a trance and with no memory of ever disappearing. I know it isn't much to go on, but I understand that investigating is still part of the job. I have already told the police to stand by and let you do your thing, but please, do try to be neat about it, I have a reputation to hold."

Nero walked with Trish back to the car and opened the trunk, pulling Lucifer out once more and slinging it onto his back, feeling the cold chill go through his spine as it attuned to his demonic aura. As he closed the Trunk, Trish holstered her guns and looked to him, "So where do we start?"

"Could be just as simple as possessions, however there is something he definitely isn't telling us."

"Like what?"

Nero quickly spun, throwing a thorn from one of Lucifer's wings into one of the people walking past and impaling them into a wall. Blood poured out from around the large, stone-like sword now taking residence in the civilian's stomach. He coughed violently and stared down at his wound in shocked confusion, ragged gasps of breath mixed with blood escaping his mouth. Trish looked on in almost as much shock at the victim, pointing Umbra at Nero, "Nero! What are you-"

"Watch," was all Nero said as the thorn exploded, the person turning into sand which fell to the ground and was sent flying a few feet in each direction. Trish suddenly understood and redirected her aim as all of the nearby people turned to look at the hunters, their jaws all unhinging and growing twice as large as fingers turned into sharp claws of bone. "He spun a good tale, but my bringer was going crazy the whole time. I'm surprised you didn't notice until now, you must actually be getting old."

Trish muttered something sarcastic in response, knowing that she screwed up and not needing an 'I told you so'. Nero stood still like a statue, hands ready to whip out thorns as needed when one of the demons rushed forward, Trish wasting no time and quickly shooting it a few times in the chest, the demon promptly turning to sand like the first.

Nero, noticing them all now begin to swarm them like flies to crap, Quickly grasped three sets of four thorns, quickly clapping his hands and forming and rotating ring around he and Trish. As the swords revolved around the two, they began to spin vertically on their own axis, gaining momentum and speed until being launched outward, spearing all of the nearby demons. Each subsequent explosion sent more sand into the air, stinging Nero's light skin as it exploded outward. Behind him, he could hear Trish now using Force Edge and round trip, the sword spinning as it sliced through a few more demons.

Deciding this wasn't enough, Nero clapped his hands again, summoning the thorns that hadn't yet exploded and created a barrier of spikes around himself before pulling the cards out again. Trish scoffed as she fired into the large sand-cloud, her shots imbued with her natural lightning abilities, "What are you going to do, play poker with them?!"

Nero grinned cockily and shuffled the cards quickly, pulling five from the deck of fifty-two, "Sure~"

Lady sighed as she opened the doors to DevilMayCry, finding tat Nero had once again forgotten to lock them. The shop looked fine from where she stood, yet she couldn't help but want to give the place a walk-through, just to be sure. She pulled Kalina Ann from it's place on her back and set it onto the desk, drawing a pistol and silently making her way over to the stairs. The upstairs was clear, with nothing noticeably out of place in her opinion. Going back downstairs, she sighed in relief when she found the kitchen also clear, and holstered the pistol once more. As she ran a hand through her hair and exited the kitchen, she finally noticed the Devil Arm door forced open, the blood barrier on it also broken. Cursing repeatedly, she quickly pulled out her phone and speed-dialed Nero, hoping he had only lost the key and broke in himself. As she paced back and forth in the office, she could just make out a figure in the peripheral of her vision, quickly looking to the door to see it close. Running outside, Lady quickly drew her pistol again and cursed loudly at the lack of anyone outside, "Shit..."

Nero laughed as he threw each of the five cards, having them stick to the demons outside his spiked barrier, "Sorry, but that there is a full house," He then shuffled the cards once more before snapping, the cards that were stuck to demons exploding and tearing them to pieces, "and it was smart of you guys to fold. Besides, I prefer fifty-two pick-up myself!" Nero then tossed the once again full deck up into the air, the cards rapidly descending and tagging a demon each before exploding and filling the street with a dense cloud of sand, making him cover is dull-burning eyes.

When the cloud finally cleared away, Nero smiled and wiped the sand from his face, "Those were my father's cards, too." He joked as he pulled the package out of his pocket, happy seeing it was once again filled with cards. Looking over at Trish, he smiled more seeing she was alright and seemingly unharmed, "You doing alright there?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I've got sand in places I didn't know could have sand, but aside I'm perfectly fine. New Devil Arm?"

Nero smiled, "Yeah, got it a couple jobs back from a lesser guardian that ran this whole gambling ring with the mafia, I call it 52, thought it was a suiting name."

"Right, 52... So what now?"

Looking down at his glowing Bringer, Nero looked down the street and saw the mayor standing on the dividing line between the lanes. He grinned darkly and slowly clapped as he approached, "Not bad, not bad at all, considering those homunculi were actually created with some effort on my master's part."

"Who would that be then? Nero asked, slowly drawing a thorn from Lucifer.

The mayor's grin grew even more as a dark energy swallowed him from the ground up, dissipating just as fast as it appeared and revealed his true form. He wore a large suit of armor, dark with lines of energy constantly shimmering through a spectrum of colors along his limbs. In his hands now manifested a large zweihander, looking like a mix between stone and organic matter like his armor. Trish fired off both of her guns, the bullets bouncing off of the demon's armor. Nero cursed lightly, he looked like the Angelos from Fortuna but... This was different, this guy was much stronger than any possessed armor he had ever faced, as Trisha's shots would have torn him apart. Nero quickly blocked an attack by the demon with his Bringer, the force actually causing him to kneel some, before picking it up, slamming it to into a nearby building before slamming him into the ground.

Nero fist pumped and drew a few thorns before launching them at the demon and watching it as the three thorns impaled it through it's dark armor, the following explosions ripping a few small holes in it's armor with no reaction from it as to any pain or hindrance.

Nero growled as he sidestepped another slash with table-hopper and tossed a couple thorns at the demon, which he countered with light blue swords materialized from thin air, both shattering on impact with the other. 52 had much of the same issue, where the cards would stick, but any damage done wasn't obvious as it barely slowed down the demonic knight. Trish became pre-occupied with a few homunculus, not seeing one that managed to sneak behind her and managed to knock her out, leaving her slumped in a sitting position against the wall. Nero could sense she was still living and, after using Lucifer to create a barrier around her, suddenly found his options were limited. If he wanted to keep her safe, he couldn't use Lucifer...

Nero needed to level the playing field somehow, and found that he was in another situation where he wished Red Queen hadn't been destroyed during his time inside the Savior. Resorting to what he had to, Nero rolled over to Trish and tore the Perfect amulet from her chest, rolling again and picking up Force Edge in his Bringer as well. In a large flash of energy, Nero now held Sparda, and found himself distracted by it. He had held it once for a short while during the Savior incident, but he had never actually used it and connected to it like he did now. He could feel the hot, lead-like power flowing through his bringer and through his veins throughout his whole body.

Shaking his head and adopting a defensive stance, Nero regained his bearings and blocked another strike from the knight before countering with his own, the blade turning into a scythe and leaving a deep gash in the demon's torso. Cursing, Nero began to slash at him with what scythe techniques he could make up on the spot, just to have it revert back to it's sword mode. Growling, Nero tightened his grip on it, as if affirming his dominance, "Stop." Quickly thrusting the sword forward, it elongated into a large spear, piercing the demon's armor before quickly shortening back into a sword again, fluorescent blue blood poured from the now open wound, causing the thing to kneel with a grunt.

Nero continued his assault, quickly streaking forward and throwing Sparda. As if reading his mind, it turned into a scythe and began rapidly spinning around the knight, rapidly slashing away at multiple points on his body. With a growl, the demon staggered backward and put his hand out, grabbing the scythe in mid spin and throwing it to the floor at Nero's feet. With a chuckle, the knight quickly disappeared in a flash of violet light, disappearing into the now night sky.

Panting, Nero forced his will onto the blade once more, eventually tearing the perfect amulet from it and turning it back into Force Edge, the flow of power within him suddenly retreating back into the blade and leaving him on his own knees exhausted. Seeing Trish still in her state of shock, Nero groaned and picked her up, gently laying her down in the back seat before getting in the drivers seat and turning the key in the ignition. Hearing his phone go off, he looked to see the large number of messages he missed from Lady. Knowing something had to be utterly wrong, he quickly drove off.

Nero quickly kicked the doors to the office open and carried Trish inside before laying her onto the couch. Immediately upon entering, Lady began to spam him with questions and whatnot, following him as he put Trish down and made sure she was OK, "Lady, shush, slow it down, and replay it."

"Someone broke into the Devil Arm vault while you were gone."

Nero looked over at the door, "I can see that, thanks. The barrier there would stop-"

"The barrier is broken Nero! Not to mention multiple Devil Arms are now missing too!"

Nero cursed and tried to calm the mass amount of confusion rolling around in his head, "OK... How many are we talking here?"

"I don't know... Maybe five or so?"

Nero took a long look at the broken vault door for a long minute before sighing and punching the ground next to him with his human hand, the pain radiating up his arm distracting him from all of the confusion in his head. "Listen, she was taken down by surprise, and you know more medical stuff than I do so..."

"I got it Nero, sorry to spring this on you suddenly."

"It's not your fault... Should have learned to lock the doors anyhow, just take care of her."

"What about you, kid? You look like you've had a rough day."

"I'm gonna have a quick shower and head to bed for the night. You're welcome to stay in the guest room if you want to."

"Thanks..."

Nero stood up, stretching his back with a soft groan before heading up the stairs and into the bathroom. Stripping his clothes off, he turned the shower on full blast and stepped into the freezing rain of water. The chills it sent up his spine helped him to relax and think about things a bit more clearly. Holding his bringer up, he watched as it glow dimly, filling the dark bathroom with a light blue glow. When he had grabbed Sparda, it had flashed red... "You never cease to surprise me, do you..?"

Exhaustion was creeping up on him fast, he hadn't realized how dependent he would become on Sparda's energy so quickly. Yawning, he collapsed onto his bed and sighed, "Another job, and again no payment... How did you do it Dante..."

Anthony walked into the ghost town, carrying his bag over his shoulder as he walked through. The ground was littered in sand and blackened scorch marks on the walls. Fixing his hood further over his face, he continued to walk through the long deserted town, almost to his destination. Hearing a growl behind him, Anthony saw what looked like a person stuck under rubble. When he crouched to help them, he quickly jumped back when it tore itself free and took on a more demonic appearance. With a solemn sigh, Anthony raised his leg up and thrust it down, forcing his bot through the demon's skull. As it faded down into dust, Anthony re-slung his bag on his shoulder and continued West toward what people like to call, "The City of Sin."


End file.
